From K-reality shows to Nayanthara’s wedding documentary, Netflix looks for an ‘unscripted’ success

In 2022 , over 75 percent members across Asia Pacific watched unscripted content. A broad and diverse category which includes reality and variety shows, docu-series,and comedy sketches. Navigating the lives of real people and their situations has found a resonance with viewers across countries.

Minyoung Kim, VP Content, Netflix APAC observes though its unusual for unscripted shows to travel beyond the home country, given the socio cultural disparities, recent successes of dating shows like Singles Inferno (Korea), Love Village (Japan), Indian Matchmaking (India), The Fabulous Lives Of Bollywood Wives (India), as well as Physical 100 (Korea) found global popularity, validating the success for the genre.

Real people in unpredictable situations and uncertainty unfolding on screens is riveting for audiences who can witness, and place themselves into their live. The gamification of survival arises from the hyper individualistic societies, which has made competitive survival a huge draw. The mega success of Squid Games, will soon see a Squid Game, The Challenge with the biggest cash prize, of $4:56 million, on reality TV.

The super popular South Korean show Physical 100, is another variant of the survival game format with a large cash prize. As 100 people from all walks of life, male and female, took on the brutal challenge to prove their physical might, the show rose to the number one position in global ranking earlier this year, a first for a Korean reality series.

Physical 100, gears up for a bigger and more ruthless challenge in its second edition. With a larger female participation and contestants from diverse backgrounds.

Creator Jang Ho Gi says, “The timeline for the new season is the 1950’s & 60’s. It was a time when mankind faced fierce competition and had to live and fight against injustice. That apart, we also address what does a perfect human physique mean?” He further adds, “What’s really important is that when the viewers watch it they should feel and anticipate the challenges on screen, something they can experience too. If things which have not been seen before are showcased, it’s an immediate disconnect.”

Lessons learnt from the previous season, when there were a few scandals related to the participants, has led to stringent background checks as well as mind sessions with psychologists.

It’s a well known fact, no one does zombies better than Korea. The ongoing Zombieverse takes participants on a quest for survivingg a ‘real’ zombie apocalypse. Park Jin Kyung, the show creator observes, “Korea has a range of variety shows as well as well known zombie scripted dramas and films, so we decided to merge the two streams together with this.” A reality version of The Walking Dead, it gives you the chills and thrills sans the jump scare moment. If you can suspend disbelief as the survivors do, then the show gives you the much needed wild ride.

If real life dating is tedious, reality dating is a huge draw among viewers. Single’s Inferno, where flirty singles seek love on a deserted island, returns with a Season 3, with the promise of being more raw and hotter. As well as The Devil’s Plan, a mind game with 12 contestants that also features SEVENTEEN’s Sungkwan, comes with a whopping prize money of 500 million Korean Won, roughly over ₹3 crore.

KDramas have given love and dating a whole new meaning, and riding high on its success is a quirky Japanese dating show Love Like a K Drama. An innovative hybrid format which sees four Korean actors and four Japanese actresses pair up to land lead roles in Kdramas. Unscripted content comprised 70% of the linear programming in Japan in 2022, with unconventional dating shows and sketch comedy being popular amongst viewers.

The country’s rapidly ageing population may present concerns, but reality romance brings cheer. Love Village featured ordinary people aged 35 to 60 seeking love, and is back with a season 2.

While in Lighthouse musician-actor Gen Hoshino and comedian Masayu Wakabayashi, embark on a candid conversation of their struggles, and fears with viewers.

Dai Ota, executive producer, reveals Japan’s long history with unscripted, and a wide range of tried-and-tested formats, has led them to experiment with hybrid and mixed genres. Closer home, nothing works better than Bollywood. The glossy window into the The Fabulous Lives Of Bollywood Wives gears up for its third innings.

True crime being another favourite genre, the success of House Of Secrets, explored the many theories around the death of a family. The latest docu series The Hunt For Veerappan unravels India’s longest and costliest manhunt for India’s most wanted criminal. The show, which has opened to rave reviews, explores the enigma and influence of India’s most wanted criminal.

Apoorva Bakshi , writer and producer of the show says, “We wanted to tell every facet of his story. We had to convince his wife Muthulakshmi to speak to us. She was born into the world, she gives representation to the female perspective, she brought in a lyrical tone to the telling. She tells us how he became the man he did, and despite the violence he inflicted on people, there was clear understanding on what be believed. In documentaries there are uncertainties, and surprises, documentary writing is a category that needs to be homed and nurtured across the world.

“Looking ahead we took a right swing with non fiction which we started building four years ago.Its given us a head-start amongst competition since we were the first, its also helped us helped build franchisees as we go ahead with returning seasons and we are building a comedy vertical and a documentary genre as well,” says Tanya Bami, director series, Netflix India.

So as actor Nayanthara gears up to divulge details of her marriage to co-star Vignesh in Nayanthara: Beyond The Fairy Tale. Indian Rap’s enfant terrible Honey Singh explores his rise and fall in the documentary Yo Yo Honey Singh.

In times of plateauing subscribers and streaming clashes, the only way to script success is being ‘unscripted.’